


skip the boring bits

by storyop



Category: EXO (Band), SHINee
Genre: M/M, kind of crack but not really, really minor background baeksoo and xiuchen uwu, this was not supposed to be over 10k
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-26
Updated: 2018-04-26
Packaged: 2019-04-28 05:53:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,744
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14442780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/storyop/pseuds/storyop
Summary: minho turns into a dog and junmyeon searches for a flower. somewhere along the way, he realizes what it all means.





	skip the boring bits

**Author's Note:**

> finally, me, the Biggest 2ho/Junho/Whatever It's Called Stan Ever, comes through with a fic (also sorry for not posting anything for like . three months i went through the absolute worst case of writer's block and hated pretty much everything i put down... glad that's over. mostly)
> 
> for mae (happy birthday uwu even though i'm late and by a bit more than eleven minutes) and as always, jonghyun

 

it takes junmyeon an embarrassing amount of time to realize that, as king, he’s not qualified to enter the archery tournament. 

“it would be… indecent for someone of your status to compete amongst the commoners,” jongin tells him, scribbling something down with an absurdly large quill the exact dark color of his hair. junmyeon gets the wild vision of jongin as a bird, plucking feathers out of his body so he can use them to write. “rules are rules.” he doesn’t look like he quite believes what he’s saying, but he’s saying it nevertheless. 

“but i’m the king,” junmyeon says. maybe if he frowns at jongin long enough he’ll take pity on the way it’s marring his beautiful face. “i can just change the rules.” it’s the first time they’re doing the tournament, and he has already been sidelined?

“that will take time,” jongin says, not looking up. “and voting.”

junmyeon groans, resting his forehead on the large table between them. “ _ voting _ .” stupid erisian constitution requiring him to process all changes in laws through a ministry. they’ll spend three months deciding whether it’s proper for a king to compete with “commoners” and another three deciding whether there should be an official tournament uniform.

“if it makes you feel any better,” jongin says, setting the quill down carefully, “i think you’re a marvelous archer.” 

junmyeon lifts his head, a stray piece of paper sticking to his cheek before it slides off in a descent reminiscent of his mood. “you’re fired,” he says, and jongin just smirks. he’s pretty sure he fires jongin more times than jongin complains about his terrible jokes. which really aren’t  _ that _ bad, no matter how disappointed jongin may look when he’s shaking his head at him in a desperate yet respectful plea to shut up. although, junmyeon does admit that the feetish one may have taken things a step too far. 

“you would crash and burn without me,” jongin says, pushing a paper across the table to junmyeon. “sign this.” 

it’s a decree lowering the tax on jasmine tea, which was only a problem last year when baekhyun—that insufferable,  _ popular _ man—had announced that he was absolutely in  _ love _ with this type of tea and the general public had clamored to buy it except it was shipped from a country far, far away and the tax on it was so high the royal palace had been flooded with angry petitions demanding for a reduction. trust the ministry to deliver this to him  _ now _ , almost seven months later.

he stares down at the paper. “i can’t do this anymore. please go to the royal library and find me a book on getting out of all this, preferably titled  _ how to resign from being king 101 _ .” he signs it. 

“pretty sure you have to have an heir to do that,” jongin informs him, and junmyeon considers flipping the table in his anger. except the table’s heavy and then poor jongin would have to clean it all up and junmyeon could watch for only a few minutes before feeling guilty enough to help. “so,” jongin says, smiling like he knows something junmyeon doesn’t, “i think your best bet is to get married and have kids. shall i scour the lands for a beautiful maiden?”

“do you have any  _ good _ news,” junmyeon pleads, decidedly ignoring jongin’s words. he’s still upset about the archery thing. he’s the best shot in the country but he’s never going to get a chance to prove it just because he has a title attached to his name that has so far been more trouble than is worth. even though he does love his people. 

“oh, yeah, your boyfriend’s coming tomorrow,” jongin says, nodding as one of the servants sets a tray with tea down in front of them. junmyeon takes a cautious sniff, satisfied when neither of them turn out to be jasmine. 

“my… boyfriend?” confused, junmyeon mentally runs through a list of all the men in his life. there’s jongin, but he’s pretty sure they’re not dating and he’s sitting in front of him so it doesn’t make sense he’d both refer to himself in the third person and talk about coming tomorrow, unless he meant it in a sexual way which would be doubly weird because junmyeon has both never had sex with jongin and has never  _ thought _ about having sex with jongin. there’s kyungsoo, but kyungsoo’s with baekhyun and as far as junmyeon knows neither of them are open to polyamory, although to be fair junmyeon has never asked. then there’s chanyeol, who has a nice smile, yes, and he’s tall and not terrible looking… and junmyeon does like his tall boys with the nice smiles and the deep voices—

“are you really sitting here thinking about this?” jongin asks, looking bemused. “ _ minho _ . minho’s coming tomorrow.” 

“oh!” junmyeon says. “oh, okay. yeah, he’s not my boyfriend? i’m not sure what gave you that idea? we’re just best friends.” and so they have been, ever since they were merely princes of neighboring kingdoms and — believe it or not — the same height. it’s kind of difficult not to be friends with minho, who’s effortlessly outgoing and smiles like he’s having a competition with the sun. junmyeon’s sure minho could make friends with a rock if he tried, and the unenchanted kind too. 

“does  _ he _ know that?”  

“what?” junmyeon says, sipping his tea. 

jongin stares at him for so long junmyeon’s afraid he’s fallen asleep with his eyes open again, a remnant of the time when he’d eaten a cursed piece of chicken and dozed off anywhere and anytime. jongin had slept through his dinner two days in a row before baekhyun had dragged him to kind witch yixing for a cure—not that most witches aren’t kind, it’s just that yixing is almost unbearably so. 

“never mind,” jongin says, and that’s that.

 

 

one time, minho and junmyeon had a bit of a friendly competition which had quickly devolved because minho takes things so  _ seriously _ , and he’s also annoyingly good at everything on top of looking and acting perfect and junmyeon totally hates him. it doesn’t help that junmyeon is a terrible baker no matter how hard he’s tried and how many times he’s tried to pester kyungsoo into teaching him. kyungsoo’s a good teacher, but even he can’t drag junmyeon out of the pits of baking hell. 

minho had made a hell of a platter of cupcakes—vanilla, frosted to perfection, even covered in  _ sprinkles _ (where the hell had he gotten those? is there a secret sprinkles fountain in quasimodo that junmyeon’s never heard of?)—and junmyeon had been forced to watch kyungsoo’s blissed out face as he’d devoured one in about two seconds. 

to make matters worse, kyungsoo had taken one look at junmyeon’s slightly burned cake with the giant dent in the frosting where he’d dropped his knife into it and declared it unfit to even eat, leading junmyeon to genuinely consider throwing kyungsoo in the dungeons for mild treason. minho, on the other hand, had cut himself a generous piece of the cake and eaten the entirety of it with a smile on his face, assuring junmyeon it wasn’t “that bad” and he just had a lot of “room for improvement.” 

“whipped,” kyungsoo had said, shaking his head, and junmyeon had frowned down at his cake, head tilted.

“is that the kind of icing this is?” he’d asked, absentmindedly rubbing off a bit of it that had stuck to the corner of minho’s mouth with a napkin, and kyungsoo had laughed until there were tears in his eyes.

he still doesn’t understand, but the important thing is that minho now makes it a point to bring his famous pink cupcakes with him as a gift every time he visits eris. and  _ fine _ , he deserved to win. they’re amazing cupcakes.

junmyeon is lounging on his (uncomfortable) throne, daydreaming about winning the archery competition  _ he can’t compete in _ to the cheers and applause of his adoring subjects when minho enters the room, flanked by his bodyguards, which frankly he doesn’t need because on top of being a perfect king with a winning personality and great baking skills, minho is really good at fighting. not as good as, say, baekhyun or even junmyeon (he  _ does _ have some redeeming qualities) but better than the average person. 

in fact, he muses as he rests his chin on minho’s shoulder in the warmest hug he’s had since minho last visited, minho always laughs long and hard at all of junmyeon’s jokes, too. there are really no cons to his character.

“i missed you,” minho murmurs, squeezing a bit too tight, and junmyeon pats his back. “how’ve you been?” 

“i miss being just a prince,” junmyeon answers truthfully, and anticipating minho’s next question, he assures him eris is doing well too. “how are things in quasimodo?” 

“you’d know if you visited more often,” minho answers, and junmyeon laughs at his pout. “i heard about the whole archery thing, by the way. but you know… you’re the winner in my heart?” it comes off sounding more like a question, and junmyeon groans.

“noooo, no,” junmyeon says, shaking his head, “stop being nice.” he frowns exaggeratedly, and minho reaches over to squeeze his cheeks in between his hands. “i wanted a chance to prove myself.” his words are garbled both from minho and from the smile blooming across his face.

“you don’t need to prove yourself,” minho says gently. “you’re worthy the way you are.” there’s  _ gravity _ in his tone, and junmyeon’s smile fades a little. 

minho lets go of his face. steps back. “sorry.” he scratches at his neck and junmyeon thinks about how he misses the warmth of minho’s palms. “hey, is it cool if we have an early dinner? i’m a bit tired.”

“yeah,” junmyeon says, remembering with a start that he’s supposed to be a good host. “come on, you’re in your usual room. take a bath or something while we get things ready.” 

“okay.” minho’s smile is back on his face and junmyeon can’t stop looking at him and there’s something tugging at him in the back of his mind like some kind of epiphany he’s on the edge of having but for the life of him he can’t quite figure out what it is. 

 

 

kyungsoo is a great cook and a better baker, but his hugs are far more delicious than any food he could ever make. he doesn’t do it often, but every time junmyeon weasels a hug out of him he’s left feeling a thousand times better and less confused than he did about five seconds ago. 

and so, junmyeon heads down to the kitchens, both for a nice round of kyungsoo therapy and to tell the cooks to hustle because what minho wants, minho gets.

kyungsoo takes one look at his face and says promptly, “you are so stupid.” 

“i didn’t do or say anything,” junmyeon protests. “also, i am your  _ king _ . show some respect.”

“your majesty,” kyungsoo says, tipping his head to the side and looking at him with those big dark eyes, “you are so stupid.” but he opens his arms and junmyeon falls into them gratefully, finding the way he keeps thinking about hugging minho instead a little strange. 

“why do i get the feeling that you know something that i don’t and you refuse to tell me because you like the idea of knowing something i don’t?” junmyeon asks.

“well,” kyungsoo says, “you got the first part of that right.” junmyeon has always thought kyungsoo was a study of opposites—his presence bigger than his body, shy but straightforward, quiet but with unmistakable authority. he would make a good king. “i do know something, but it isn’t my something to tell. so you’ll just have to wait.” he claps his hands together, once, and junmyeon jumps. “okay, i’m guessing you want us to hustle? for minho?”

junmyeon considers shoving his palm into kyungsoo’s face to wipe that smirk off, but then again kyungsoo is a valuable member of his court and definitely more tolerable than chanyeol and his overdramatics or jongin and his off the rails sense of humor or even baekhyun with his tendency to steal food from the kitchens, right from under kyungsoo’s nose. kyungsoo never puts a stop to it because all baekhyun has to do is put his arms around his waist and back him into a wall and kiss him until they’re both gasping for breath for kyungsoo to shut up about it forever—junmyeon has  _ seen _ it happen. and promptly wished he would have forgotten about it. (he’s still wishing.)

dinner is an explosion of laughter and chanyeol groaning every time junmyeon so much as  _ tries _ to crack a joke, so he just gives up and lets minho talk about that strange kingdom bordering his with that king that kept hosting balls and turning people into ice. 

“his name’s jonghyun and he was under some kind of spell,” minho tells them, “and you know how kibum is—we’ve been friends forever and he still doesn’t listen to a word i say—he went in there ‘cause apparently his  _ dreams _ told him to and he came out with a husband and kingdom. crazy, isn’t it?” 

“wow,” junmyeon says, sighing. “i wonder when i’ll be able to go on a quest and meet my dashing king.” immediately after, he feels like he’s said something wrong, but he can’t figure out what it is, even though kyungsoo is giving him a  _ look _ and baekhyun has his head in his hands and minho is frowning down at his food. “dessert?” 

dessert is, of course, minho’s beautiful cupcakes, and he and junmyeon argue for two minutes straight about who should eat the first bite. minho finally yields when junmyeon insists that its his kingdom, he’s the king, he makes the rules. half of him suspects minho kept arguing with him just because he doesn’t like to lose. 

minho takes one big bite of his cupcake before a strange look passes over his face.

“what’s wrong?” junmyeon asks minho, except it’s not minho, it’s a dog.

it’s quiet. junmyeon stares.

“did everyone else see that or did i have too much to drink?” chanyeol asks, breaking the silence. 

“don’t touch the cupcakes,” kyungsoo hisses, batting the one chanyeol’s holding out of his hands.

“guys,” baekhyun says, “i think minho turned into a dog.” 

 

 

it’s a bit chaotic after that, and after the flurry of questions and screaming and arguing is over, junmyeon finds himself blissfully alone in his room with minho the dog in his arms and someone standing guard at the door in case any magical cupcakes try to force their way inside. 

“you’re a lot smaller than i honestly thought you’d be as a dog,” junmyeon tells minho, not even minding that he’s speaking to a dog because—well, because it’s minho, human or not. “not that i imagined you as a dog, you know? just that you’re so… you know, so big in real life, and you’re tiny now…” he trails off, convinced he’s seen minho just roll his eyes at him. “can you… understand what i’m saying?” minho blinks. “well, i’m glad i didn’t tell you any of my incredibly embarrassing secrets then. not that—not that i have a lot of those that i haven’t told you about already!” 

minho barks at him like he’s telling him to shut up, and junmyeon shuts up. he strokes minho’s fur, soft and dark and warm the way human minho’s hair is, scratching behind his ears. minho nuzzles his head into junmyeon’s stomach, seemingly letting out a soft sigh, and junmyeon can’t help but smile. even as a dog minho is terribly affectionate.

“i think i’ll take you to yixing,” junmyeon says thoughtfully as minho’s eyes shut, the rhythm of junmyeon petting him lulling him into a half sleep. “he’ll probably know what to do. he fixed jongin’s sleep curse, and before that he fixed chanyeol’s disastrous attempt to reduce the size of his ears—he’s good enough at following directions but the man doesn’t have an ounce of magic in his bones and he didn’t need it anyway so his ears got that huge for no reason and you can tell they’re still a bit too big for his head and you know all of this already, i’m sorry, i’m talking too much i’m just”—he takes a breath—“worried.” minho is asleep by now, small body rising and falling with each one of his breaths, and junmyeon stares down at him. “i hope you don’t get stuck like this.” 

 

 

yixing lives in a  _ cave _ , which is so terribly cliché junmyeon believed baekhyun was playing a practical joke on him for an entire week before he dragged him to meet the witch. baekhyun and yixing had become friends when baekhyun had been gallivanting through the forest looking for flowers so he could braid himself a crown and stumbled upon a rare type of mushroom that yixing really needed for one of his spells. junmyeon doesn’t know all the details but apparently yixing had shrunk him and forced him to give it up, allowing him to come back to his cave to learn just a touch of magic in exchange. baekhyun still dabbles, but the most he’s really able to do by himself is turn the lights in the palace on and off.

the inside of yixing’s cave is, truth be told, grander than the royal palace itself. witch lights burn at every crevice, illuminating the entire place with a bright unflickering glow, and it smells like herbs and magic and bread, which yixing seems to eat a lot of. yixing is doing a handstand in the corner, robes falling around his face, which is slightly pink from the exertion. 

“what are you doing?” junmyeon asks, and minho lets out a small, high-pitched bark. junmyeon almost drops him in his surprise; this is the first time minho’s made a noise louder than a whine since he turned into a dog. 

“last time i did a handstand i lasted two minutes,” yixing says, letting the rest of his body fall rather ungracefully onto the floor underneath him. “i’m trying to see if i can beat that record.” 

“does it… help you focus your magic or something?” junmyeon asks. his voice has unconsciously dropped into a hushed whisper.

beside him, baekhyun snorts, and yixing looks at him like he’s grown two heads. “no. what? why would me doing a handstand focus my magic?”

“anyway,” baekhyun says, tugging at junmyeon’s elbow to drag him further inside, “we have a problem. it’s a big problem, bigger than jonginnie’s sleeping curse.” 

yixing eyes minho, who eyes him back. “is that junmyeon’s boyfriend?” 

“what?” junmyeon says. “no, this is minho. can you fix him?” 

yixing is rubbing at his forehead like he’s already run out of patience with junmyeon, which is weird because usually yixing really likes him, probably because he’s not bouncing off the walls like baekhyun always is. “tell exactly me what happened to him.” 

“okay, so, seven years ago—” baekhyun makes a small noise of distress, and junmyeon realizes maybe the entire backstory isn’t all that important. “he was human, and then he ate his cupcake, and he… well…” he holds minho up, ignoring the dirty look he’s getting from him. “i brought the one he bit into, by the way, if that helps at all.” 

“i don’t think it had anything to do with the food,” yixing replies, crouching down so he can look at minho’s head closer. he holds out his hand, and minho licks a long slobbering stripe up yixing’s palm, making him giggle. “no, i think this is a rare case of  _ non reversio amoris _ .” 

“of course,” baekhyun says.

“what?” junmyeon says. 

yixing gives him a  _ look _ from under his fringe. it reminds junmyeon of kyungsoo’s  _ look _ and he doesn’t understand why he’s on the receiving end of it so often. “sometimes, when there’s just the right combination of factors, a person will turn into an animal because of  _ non reversio amoris _ . it means, junmyeon, that minho’s in love with someone who doesn’t love him back—or is too far up their ass to realize that they do.” 

“oh,” junmyeon says softly, clicking his tongue down at minho, who looks rather pained. “but who would be stupid enough not to love minho back?” 

yixing’s face is pink again, even though he’s definitely not standing on his hands anymore. “who would be—” he’s interrupted by an insistent bark from minho, who looks as panicked as a dog can. “baekhyun, how do you live with him?” 

“it’s really jongin that gets the worst of it,” baekhyun answers from where his head is in his hands. “he deserves an award for it; we usually don’t have to deal with him directly the way jongin does.”

“look, i don’t know what you guys are talking about, but it’s not really important.” junmyeon shifts on his feet, running his hand over minho’s head. “just... can you fix it?” 

“no,” yixing says flatly, and junmyeon’s blood chills. minho doesn’t utter a sound. “not,” he amends, “with what i have here.  _ non reversio amoris _ can only be undone using the petals of the icarus flower, and those are just as rare as the curse itself.” 

“there has to be  _ something _ !” junmyeon cries. “minho can’t stay a dog forever! what am i supposed to do without his hugs and baking?” 

yixing looks terribly unimpressed. “icarus flowers only grow in the coldest of climates, and as you probably already know, eris doesn’t really fit the description. you won’t find any here.”

“i’m willing to go anywhere to get this flower,” junmyeon says. maybe this will be his quest—to travel to a far off kingdom to get a magic flower that will save his best friend from eternal doghood.

“you astound me,” baekhyun says, sounding like he believes it. “hey, wasn’t minho talking about that ice king kibum, uh, seduced? saved? whatever?” 

“yeah…” junmyeon says slowly. “are you suggesting i go to aurora so i can find an icarus flower there?” it makes sense, if he thinks about it. aurora neighbors quasimodo, and quasimodo is merely a short trip away. aurora is certainly cold enough for these flowers to bloom. 

“maybe if you mention kibum’s name it’ll pull a couple strings,” baekhyun says. “but, uh. are you sure you want to be the one going? you’re kind of the… king.” 

“i would do anything to get minho back,” junmyeon says firmly. “put kyungsoo in charge in my place and make sure you’re not around to distract him too much. jongin likes him better than me anyway.” 

yixing makes a small sound at the back of his throat. “good, now get your oblivious ass out of my cave so i can practice my handstands again.” 

 

 

junmyeon leaves the castle at dawn the next day, armed with his trusty bow and quiver and with minho’s small head peeking out of his saddlebags, opposite where the quiver is. minho seems really excited about all of this, and junmyeon doesn’t blame him—who’d want to lack opposing thumbs for the rest of their life? 

he has to ride through a gaggle of his people, and he waves to them all, cheerful and mighty from his vantage point. he’s a good king, beloved by the people, but apparently not good enough to keep his best friend into turning into a dog. 

“cute dog!” one of his subjects screams. he can’t tell where or who it came from.

“he’s a cuter human!” he yells back, smile fixed on his face. his arm is rather tired. 

there’s a forest between eris and quasimodo, through which there’s only one traversable path, warded by magic—your other option is to traipsing through the woods, which isn’t the greatest idea unless you’re looking to be attacked by a bear or a hellhound. junmyeon drops his hand, relieved, and stares down the line of trees like they’re going to come to life and part for him. 

beside him, minho lets out a soft bark, and junmyeon takes that as encouragement. he urges his horse forward, hand on the hilt of his sword, down the path. the sunlight falls in patches on his skin, the canopy overhead blocking most of it—which he’s thankful for, because armor is uncomfortable enough on its own and only gets worse in heat. 

they ride for what feels like hours, much to junmyeon’s confusion, because it should’ve been two hours away, max. he hasn’t made the journey to quasimodo as much as minho has made the one from it, but he’s sure of this much. 

junmyeon looks down, patting minho’s head hesitantly. “we’ll get you tall and handsome in no time, ming.” minho whines softly, and junmyeon clicks his tongue, heart heavy. “i’m really sorry this happened to you. when you’re human again, tell me who you’re in love with so i can beat some sense into them.” minho seems to have retained many of his human characteristics, because the look junmyeon is getting right now can only be described as  _ incredulous _ . “okay, fine, i’ll just shoot some arrows into them. okay, okay, or maybe i’ll have a talk with them—a civilized one, of course.”

he eventually slows and stops his horse when evening draws near, utterly confused. they stand there for a few moments, minho quiet too, and junmyeon looks down the path, wait for some sort of answer to pop up. 

suddenly, there’s a burst of bright yellow light straight in front of junmyeon’s eyes, and he leans back in surprise, almost sliding off his horse. 

“hi,” the light says, and junmyeon squints. 

“am i dreaming?” he wonders out loud. minho licks his hand. 

“who falls asleep riding a horse,” the light says as junmyeon wipes his hand on a bit of his pants that’s peeking out of the armor. his eyes adjust a little and he can make out a tiny, human-like figure with curled hair and an impassive face. 

“you’re a pixie,” junmyeon says in sudden realization. 

“no, you idiot,” the light says, and junmyeon bristles. “pixies don’t have wings.”

“but... you don’t have wings.”

“unimportant,” the light says dismissively. “i like your horse.” 

“okay, well, you can’t… you can’t have it,” junmyeon says. “wait. how did you get on this path? it’s warded against magical creatures—” 

“yes, well, you should probably re-ward it,” the light tells him. “not everyone you meet will be as friendly as i am.”

“you’re threatening to steal my horse,” junmyeon points out. “and i don’t even know what your name is.”

“well, i don’t know yours either, so who cares,” the light says, then lets out a tiny, tinkling sigh. “fine. i’m sehun. now give me your horse.”

“i can’t,” junmyeon says mournfully, and minho barks. junmyeon pats him on the head. “my best friend turned into a dog and now i have to go find a magical flower and bring it back to my kingdom so my friend the witch can turn him back into a human.” he pauses. “i’m junmyeon, by the way.” 

“wow,” sehun the not-pixie says, letting out a low whistle. “how’d that happen?”

“ _ non amor… non reverse…  _ um…” junmyeon can’t quite remember how it goes.

“ _ non reversio amoris? _ ” sehun says, and although junmyeon can’t actually make out all the details of his face, he thinks sehun’s eyebrows are raised. “well. this suddenly makes a lot of sense.”

“really?” junmyeon scratches behind minho’s ears. “because i don’t actually get it. can you explain it to me?”

sehun bursts into laughter. for such a small, bright thing, his laugh is terribly ugly. “no,” he wheezes. “but i will let you pass without stealing your horse. i’m quite curious as to how this turns out for the both of you.” his light flickers, but before he goes, he says, “oh, and, you’ll reach quasimodo in about ten minutes. it was pretty funny watching you get more and more confused, i have to say.”

and with that he’s gone. junmyeon stands there for a moment more, letting it process, then shrugs and presses onward.

 

 

it’s quite difficult to explain to a kingdom’s subjects why their beloved prince is a dog, so junmyeon just skips that part. he’s welcomed to the palace with open arms, although everyone is a bit puzzled as to why he’s alone; he merely says something about how minho had told him it was absolutely imperative to keep his whereabouts secret. 

he’s shown to minho’s room despite his protests, and he stands there with “you’re his closest friend, i know for a fact he wouldn’t mind” ringing in his head. 

minho wriggles out of his arms, and suddenly it all catches up to him. he sits heavily down on the floor, back against the door, and puts his head in his hands. “oh my god.” he groans. “minho, you are a  _ dog _ .” he peers through his fingers to see minho turning in circles, tail wagging happily. “i’m talking to a dog, who was my best friend only a day ago.” minho settles down, putting his head on his paws and blinking with his big dark eyes at junmyeon. 

“wait,” junmyeon says slowly, “what if this is my fault?” minho raises his head slightly. “i’d always wanted a dog as a kid. what if…” minho huffs, looking annoyed, and junmyeon rubs his hand down his face. “yeah, okay, okay, i know that doesn’t make sense. i just…” he clasps his hands together, drawing his knees to his chest. “wow. i could really use one of your hugs right now.” 

tail wagging, minho clambers into his lap, licking a wet stripe up the right side of junmyeon’s face. he laughs, stroking a hand through minho’s soft fur, and says, “right. thank you… hey, remember when we went to that masquerade ball and you met that princess? what was her name? sooyoung?” he swallows. “are you… is she the person who made you like this? i mean, you got along really well with her…” 

minho’s tail droops.

“sorry,” junmyeon says, a weird feeling spreading through his stomach. “i’m just trying to… like, what if i can’t do it? what if i can’t get that flower? i’m just trying to look for a second option—maybe if the person you’re in love with loves you back you’ll be human again.” minho noses his stomach, and he lets out a soft, shaky chuckle. “i wish you could talk.” 

or maybe the absurdity of a talking dog would be even worse for him, junmyeon muses. in a world full of magic and curses and creatures that belonged in stories, junmyeon has always been more of a straight-laced kind of guy. his laws on magic are relaxed, even more so than his father’s had been because he has so many magical friends, but he’s never really dabbled in it himself. this is, honestly, his closest contact. 

minho tugs at his sleeve, and he stands, joints creaking. the bed seems too big for just him, but he climbs into it anyway, hugging a pillow and pretending like there’s any trace of minho left on it. it helps a little when minho settles down beside him, body warm. 

junmyeon’s dreams are strange, stranger than usual, but he remembers nothing of them, only waking up with an unsettled feeling in his chest. he almost panics when he rolls over and minho’s gone, his lungs constricting until he notices minho pacing on the far end of the room. 

“don’t do that,” he groans, flopping back into the sheets. minho lifts his head questioningly. “i thought you were gone. i thought you’d left me.”  _ never leave me _ , he thinks. maybe he’s grown too dependent on minho, but he honestly can’t imagine a life without him. or remember one, for that matter—they’ve been joined at the hip since they were just toddlers, just princes of neighboring kingdoms brought together by their parents for the purposes of peace.

propping himself up on his arm, he stares down at minho, who stares right back. “i should probably… give you a bath.” 

minho looks horrified. 

“no, don’t you dare give me that look,” junmyeon admonishes, pulling himself upright. “we just rode through a forest and you kind of stink. i know because i slept beside you all night.” at minho’s bark, he waves a hand at him. “nope. technically, i’m king and you’re still a prince, and on top of that you are a dog, so i have authority.” 

he slides off the bed, and as soon as his feet touch the floor, minho bolts—except there’s nowhere to run to, so junmyeon just ends up chasing him in circles until he tires out. 

“hey,” he says, cradling minho’s small frame in his arms. for once, he’s not the one being held. “it’s okay. you’re okay. it’s just me.” 

that seems to calm minho down, and junmyeon chatters to him the entire time, telling him the things he hadn’t gotten to tell him two nights ago. “as soon as we return, i’m banning baekhyun from speaking with the public, ever. it’s his fault these ridiculous laws have to be passed every few years—this time was the jasmine tea, before that was the ban on cucumbers… what exactly does he get from being a pain in my ass… what?” 

finally, the two of them are ready to leave again, and junmyeon decides to sneak out without much fanfare. the worst part of all of it is having to struggle to put all of his armor back on alone. minho makes a small wheezing sound, and with a start junmyeon realizes he’s being laughed at. 

according to every map he’s ever studied, aurora is on the opposite side of the mountain range at quasimodo’s south border. it gets colder the closer they go to it, but it’s still bearable, and there’s no indication of the flowers yixing had described. the sun sinks further down into the horizon, and despite himself, with it goes junmyeon’s heart. 

they stop again at the small town at the foot of the village, at an inn called flash. the innkeeper is nice; he introduces himself as jongdae and assures junmyeon that pets are okay as long as they’re kept under constant scrutiny and don’t make too much of a ruckus. 

“aurora is just past these mountains, right?” he asks jongdae. minho is tucked in his arm, thankfully not wiggling too much. “i need to meet with the king.”

“past?” jongdae replies, looking surprised. “no, no. where did you hear this? aurora  _ is _ the mountain range. and if you’re looking for the royal palace, it’s on the peak.” 

junmyeon’s mouth falls into an ‘o’ shape and jongdae’s eyes crinkle. he has a sweet smile. “the… okay.” that’s an entirely new set of problems—there’s a pass through the range he’d been planning on taking, a moderately difficult trek. but to climb a mountain… 

he looks down at minho. “well, i guess i’ll have to buy a warmer coat.”

“oh, you’ll have to do more than that,” jongdae says, laughing a little. “the royal palace is guarded by an ice dragon—and he’s going to be especially on edge now that the king has left with his new beloved.” 

“shit,” junmyeon says, and minho whines. “kibum’s gone?”

“honeymoon, and all that,” jongdae says. “strange. not many people knew what his name was.” 

“ming told me,” junmyeon says absently. 

“ming? you can’t mean our prince minho?” jongdae says. “oh, you must be king junmyeon!” he bows, and junmyeon shushes him loudly. “sorry. why aren’t you… you know, in eris? what do you need to go to aurora personally for?” 

“um,” junmyeon says, “don’t… don’t announce this, but minho’s a dog.” 

“what?” jongdae’s eyes drop to minho, who wags his tail. “oh.” 

“oh?”

“i mean,” jongdae says, shrugging, “weirder things have happened. one time i turned into a ferret.” 

“a… a what?” 

“long story,” jongdae says dismissively. “lucky for you, i can help. i’ll have soojung take over and come with you. i’ve been meaning to visit minseok for a while now, anyway. he gets bored up there with no one but king jonghyun and his moping to keep him company. and now even he’s gone! what are you looking for, anyway?”

there’s a long pause. “an icarus flower,” junmyeon finally says. “also, who is minseok?” 

“the dragon,” jongdae says, as if it’s the most normal thing in the world that he’s friends with a dragon. “well, he’s a shifter, actually. only a dragon about 55% of the time. and yikes.” he looks minho in the eye. “ _ non reversio amoris _ ?”

“how’d you know?” 

“remember when i said i turned into a ferret?” jongdae answers. “sometimes minseok gets so caught up in being a ferocious ice-breathing guardian he misses the most obvious things.” 

 

 

jongdae is surprisingly talkative as they make their way up the mountain. they’re still relatively low to the ground, but junmyeon is already struggling a little, unaccustomed to mountain climbing. “being an animal kind of changes your perspective on things, you know,” he says. “made me appreciate my thumbs more. not to mention my height—not that i’m that tall, anyway.” 

“you’re preaching to the choir,” junmyeon says a little mournfully. he looks down at minho, who’s tucked away in his bag, fast asleep—probably tired from the high speed chase of the morning. “minho is. tall, i mean.” 

“mhm,” jongdae says a little obnoxiously. “i know, your majesty. he’s literally our prince.” 

junmyeon flushes. “right.” they walk in silence for a few moments. “actually… i’m a little disappointed that so far, finding this flower has been pretty easy. you’re even… dating the dragon that’s supposed to guard it.” he kicks at the snow underneath his foot. “i guess i was hoping for something grander. even the… whatever sehun was i met in the forest let me pass easily.” 

“sehun the not-pixie-because-pixies-don’t-have-wings?” jongdae asks, and junmyeon nods. “oh, he just likes messing with people. not a mean bone in his little body. also, i think he’s technically a sprite. or maybe an entirely new species, who knows. besides,” jongdae adds, pausing a little, “those flowers? they’re pretty rare. king jonghyun gave one to minseok pretty readily because minseok’s been such a loyal guardian for so long, but only because. and jonghyun’s little brother—he’s the one on the throne right now since he’s away—is even more distrustful. i think you’ll get your grand quest, your majesty.” 

he pauses in a clearing, the ground littered with snow, and pulls out a necklace from underneath his shirt. there’s a blue crystal hanging from the end of it, curved in the shape of a moon. 

“are we here? what?” 

“you ask a lot of really dumb questions,” jongdae says. “no. i’m calling minseok so he can fly us the rest of the way up—no way i’m walking all the way up to the peak.”

“are you… do you have any magic?” junmyeon asks cautiously. his bag stirs, and he looks down to see minho stick his tongue out into the air. 

“nope,” jongdae says, cheerful, “but minseok’s got enough to cover the both of us.” he kisses the moon with a loud smacking sound, then murmurs something under his breath that junmyeon doesn’t catch. 

“i told you to stop kissing it; it tickles.” 

junmyeon almost jumps at the new voice—standing in front of them is a (tiny) man, hair the color of the snow on the ground and a bemused expression on his face. his eyebrows raise when he catches sight of junmyeon, who immediately bows. 

“hello,” junmyeon says, “i’m—” but jongdae is already running at minseok, who lifts him straight off the ground to jongdae’s loud laughter. he averts his eyes, chewing on the inside of his cheek and thinking, oddly enough, of minho. 

“i know who you are,” minseok says, cheeks a little flushed when he and jongdae finally separate. “it’s kind of my job to. also, minho does not shut up about you.”

“wait,” junmyeon says, already bewildered, “you’ve met minho?” 

“no,” minseok says, snorting. “but jongdae has. and he was right; you are pretty dense.” 

junmyeon is too tired to protest. “i just need to find these flowers so i can get minho back to normal, please.” he hasn’t let himself think about it too much, but as more and more time passes he can feel the panic and despair growing in the back of his throat. he can’t imagine what minho’s going through, stuck as he is. 

minseok’s eyes crinkle. “i’d never get in the way of—” he breaks off as jongdae shakes his head. “oh, come on. can’t we tell him?” minho barks, and minseok continues, “please. you’re not my prince; i don’t have to listen to you.” 

“don’t,” jongdae insists. “this one he should really figure out for himself. and as if you have any room to speak!” 

minseok splutters at that. “oh, whatever. just get on my back. and make sure his majesty doesn’t fall off.” 

riding a dragon is an experience so harrowing that junmyeon almost regrets asking for his quest to be more difficult. he spends the entire ride clutching onto jongdae in fear, much to the more experience man’s amusement. 

“you’re not going to fall and die!” jongdae yells back to him, which does nothing in the slightest to reassure junmyeon. “just relax!” he does not relax. 

finally, minseok sets the two of them down, jongdae laughing and junmyeon still shaky. he makes a grand sight, white scales interspersed with the occasional silver and huge, bat-like wings that are almost translucent. junmyeon definitely prefers him human-shaped, though, and he can’t ignore the rush of relief that courses through him when minseok shifts back.

“you know how it was really windy up there,” minseok says flatly, and junmyeon nods a little. “yeah, well, i could smell your fear even over that. next time, because unless you want to walk all the way down”— he gestures to the side of the mountain—“you’re going to be riding the minseok again, and i do not want to deal with that a second time, so next time. just relax. i’m not going to do any belly rolls in mid-air, and jongdae won’t let you fall. he’s nice like that.” 

“ _ the _ minseok?” jongdae says, snickering.

“you’re right,” minseok says with a sigh. “i need to come up with a better name.” 

“for what, exactly,” jongdae says, rolling his eyes. “the only person you fly regularly with is me.” he pats junmyeon on the arm. “don’t feel bad, your majesty. first time i rode with him i threw up all over his claws.” 

“and it was  _ disgusting _ ,” minseok says. with passion. 

“wait,” junmyeon says. “before i… before i see him, can you tell me more about jonghyun’s brother?” 

“yeah, that’s probably smart,” minseok says, beckoning for the two of them to start moving. it’s definitely a lot chillier up here, and junmyeon burrows deeper in his coat, feeling the air bite at his exposed nose and cheeks. minho seems totally unaffected, however, and junmyeon is glad for that. “his name’s taemin. he’s adopted.”

“pretty sure he’s half fae, actually,” jongdae muses. “although… i’ve never actually seen him.” 

“then how would you know,” minseok says. 

“i’ve heard the rumors! so is he?”

“maybe,” minseok says. “he’s nice, though—really more human than fae. gets as lonely up here as jonghyun does because people don’t generally treat half-bloods as well as others, so even the people of aurora don’t  _ love _ him. it’s why he… why he’s always hesitant before he trusts anyone—but he comes and talks to me a lot because his brother loves me, and he would do anything for king jonghyun. and vice versa. we’re here, by the way. welcome to aurora.” 

it’s more of a town than an actual city, several small buildings clustered around a fountain square. “is this… all of it?” junmyeon asks. aurora is known to be notoriously secret with any all information about itself, and junmyeon honestly has no idea what the kingdom is hiding.

“yeah, pretty much,” jongdae says, as minseok gives him a sharp look. “most people don’t know the history of his place, so i’ll… tell you all that you’re allowed to know. as of now.”

“keep walking,” minseok says quietly. what little people there are part in front of him—maybe it has to do with him being a dragon, maybe with the fact that despite his stature, he’s very intimidating. “and keep your voice quiet, jongdae, hard as it will be.”

jongdae gives him a wry grin. “you remember the fae-human war?” 

“those happened years ago,” junmyeon answers, voice hushed. everyone around them ignores their little party, but there’s this feeling of…  _ something _ in the air, and whatever it is, it’s not pleasant. “during my great-grandfather’s rule. there’s… people don’t talk about it much, which is odd. there’s no fae around eris or quasimodo, either. you know, when you said prince taemin was half fae i was shocked—i didn’t know those existed.” 

“most people don’t,” jongdae answers from behind junmyeon. minseok is to the front of him, like they’re—like they’re guarding him. “and it’s for the best, probably. the fae-human war hit us hard and we would’ve undoubtedly lost if not for the help of the lesser fae. you know, sprites, pixies. elves, too.”

“we didn’t win,” minseok says. “we just signed a treaty. and every day aurora lives under the threat of the fae breaking said treaty and attacking us.” they pass a group of small children, one of them growing and shrinking an ice crystal in her hand. junmyeon does his best not to stare. “because we border them.”

“oh,” junmyeon says, almost stumbling. “ _ oh _ .” he’d always thought there was more human land on the other side of the mountains—aurora, to be exact. he’d never actually made the trip through the pass, but that was what he had been told. 

“that’s why everyone here is so distrustful of outsiders,” jongdae says, “and why prince taemin isn’t exactly a kingdom favorite. aurora was hit the hardest during the war. all this secrecy is for its own protection.” his tone implies there’s a lot they’re still not telling junmyeon. 

“why did i…” junmyeon swallows, hand automatically reaching down to smooth minho’s fur. “eris is one of the largest nations. why was i never told about this? maybe not everything about aurora, but… the war, at least? anything but a vague mention of there being one, and us signing a treaty?” 

minseok snorts. “humans don’t like to speak of their failures, your majesty. like i said, we  _ didn’t _ win the war. and any magical creature… we don’t like to speak of it, either.” his jaw clenches.

“for fear of incurring wrath?” junmyeon says. he frowns. “failure is important, as is knowledge. i think… there’s some things i need to do when i get home.” 

“protect your magical people,” minseok says stiffly. “jonghyun was always… he always cared. about us. many don’t. you’d be surprised at how bad it can get—and you will never, never understand. but you can help.” 

junmyeon nods, silent. there are already laws in place protecting anyone with magic in eris, but they’re old laws, ones he hasn’t had the presence of mind to think about looking over. 

“why’d you agree so easily to let me come here?” he says presently. 

“you pout a lot when you want something and it’s annoying,” jongdae answers, then smiles. “minho trusts you. a lot. seriously, the guy does  _ not _ have bad things to say about you. and if minho trusts you, then so do i.” 

 

 

minseok and jongdae leave him at the gates to the castle, the guards letting him through after a whispered conversation with minseok. “good luck,” jongdae says solemnly, and minseok steps on his foot. 

“i promise you taemin is  _ not _ that bad,” minseok says. there’s a trace of fondness in his tone. “just go before jongdae makes you more anxious with that big mouth of is.” 

“you like my big mouth,” junmyeon hears jongdae mutter before he rolls his eyes and steps down the path to the palace. 

it’s incredibly beautiful; it looks as though it were made completely out of ice, and the sun reflects off its surface harshly, almost blinding junmyeon. maybe that’s a defense tactic. 

it’s oddly quiet—minseok had told him to just walk right in, which is not how it would’ve worked in eris. meetings with him require civilians to go through a lot of red tape and a security pat down and a meeting with the council beforehand, which usually turns most people off from actually speaking to him. he’s not complaining. 

one of the guards, armor a shimmering silver color that reminds him of minseok’s scales, grabs his arm—surprisingly gently—to lead him toward a side door. “his highness is in the gardens,” the guard says stiffly. junmyeon can’t tell how he feels about taemin from his guarded tone. 

prince taemin is… not what he had expected. actually, he’s not quite sure what he’d expected—maybe someone more frightening. but taemin just seems young, more than anything. young and a little unnaturally beautiful, hinting at his fae parentage. that and his stillness; he almost looks like a statue as he lifts his gaze from the pond before him to junmyeon, the movement of his eyes and the very slight rise and fall of his chest the only indications he’s alive. it’s like he’s been carved out of the very thing the palace had been.

junmyeon bows. 

“what do you want?” taemin says, sounding tired. “i’m not in the position to be signing treaties or whatever. jonghyun will be back soon.” 

“treaties?” junmyeon says, surprised. “what?” minho pokes his nose out of his bag, barking softly. 

to his surprise, taemin’s face melts into a smile. “oh, who’s this?” 

“the reason i’m here,” junmyeon says, as taemin holds out his hands. minho wiggles, and junmyeon obligingly lifts him out so he can run to taemin and lick his fingers. even as a dog, minho is terribly friendly. “he… this is prince minho.”

“this is a dog,” taemin says helpfully. 

“that... i know that,” junmyeon mutters. “thank you. just. he  _ used _ to be prince minho, but then  _ non…  _ whatever! whatever it’s called, he turned into a dog and now i need an icarus flower to get him back, so. could i, you know, have one of those? because they grow here?” he flushes at the end of his little speech, even though taemin’s not even looking at him, too busy cooing over minho’s tiny body. 

“aw, but he’s cute as a dog,” taemin says, pouting. 

junmyeon swallows. thinks about how he’d write letters to minho every time he was anxious or scared or dreading some important meeting and throw them in the fire so they’d be whisked away to quasimodo, how minho loved to backhug him with his arms solidly around junmyeon’s waist, the sound of minho’s laughter—loud and incredibly obnoxious and to junmyeon, one of the most beautiful sounds in the world. that insistent tug in the back of his mind is back. “please?” 

taemin stands, gaze calculating. “you love him.”

“what?” junmyeon freezes, gaping. minho is utterly, utterly silent. “i… what?” 

“you love him,” taemin repeats, eyes softening. “and i will give you the flower. on one condition.”

“name it,” junmyeon says immediately. 

“so… i can’t leave here while jonghyun’s gone,” taemin says, body all still again. “but when he’s back, i want to leave. for once. i’ve never… i’ve never left.”  _ so young _ , junmyeon thinks sympathetically. “i want to see eris.” 

“you know i’m from eris?”

“there’s not much for me to do here except to know things,” taemin admits. “and talk to minseok, who knows more things. i want you to take me to eris, once minho’s back to being human. and i want you to let me stay at your palace while i’m there.”

“that’s it?” junmyeon asks. “i mean… i was hoping you’d tell me to… i don’t know, fight a dragon?” 

taemin grins. “you can fight minseok, if you want.” junmyeon shudders, and taemin laughs, an utterly  _ human _ sound. “yeah, that’s what i thought. besides…” he looks down at minho, who is crouched by junmyeon’s legs and looks a bit indignant. “i think your journey is more… internal.” 

“what does that even mean,” junmyeon whines. “why does no one ever give me a straight answer?” 

“i’m pretty sure i was perfectly straight earlier,” taemin says. “well, as straight as i can be.” junmyeon snickers, even though he’s still confused. “you might want to, you know, take a second and sort your feelings out.” 

“no heroic quest?” junmyeon says with a sigh.

taemin raises an eyebrow at him. “maybe the real heroic quest was the friends you made along the way.” there’s a beat of silence, and then taemin pouts. “oh, i tried.” 

 

 

junmyeon does not take taemin’s advice about thinking through his feelings—but he does take one icarus flower, petals that look exactly like minseok’s wings, shot through with a dark blue-green color, incredibly delicate. he handles it with a lot of caution, scared to squander this chance to bring minho back. 

jongdae lets him stay at flash for another night, a relieved soojung gladly handing over ownership duties back to jongdae. “i get antsy every time he goes and sees minseok,” soojung says. she’s pretty, eyes warm when they look at jongdae. “too many people is not for me. jongdae’s much more suited to this than i am.” 

“why doesn’t minseok come down here?” junmyeon asks, shoving his food around on his plate. 

“he can’t,” jongdae answers. “ice dragons have to be in temperatures just on this side of freezing at all times, or they overheat. that’s why i couldn’t just call him from down here and have him fly us up.” 

“i’m sorry,” junmyeon says. “it must be terrible, only being able to see him ever so often.” 

“mm,” jongdae says, shrugging. “we make do. love is powerful.” soojung pretends to gag, and jongdae laughs: loud, bright. “besides, how often do you get to see minho?” 

“i don’t think it’s quite the same,” junmyeon says, biting his lip. the fog is slowly clearing, however, and he’s not sure how long he can pretend it’s not. “but yes, as much as i miss him when he’s gone, it just makes our meetings that much sweeter.” 

“how romantic of you,” soojung says drily, smiling at his blush. “anyone ever tell you that your awfully dense? your majesty?” 

“i get it all the time,” he replies, smiling back.

he doesn’t let himself think about any of it that night, or the next day, or even as he’s riding through the forest between quasimodo and eris. once again, sehun makes an appearance, and he makes a mental note to re-ward the path. 

“hello, sehun the not-pixie,” junmyeon says, raising his eyebrows. “do you still want my horse?”

“your what?” sehun says. “why would i want your horse? what would i possibly do with a horse? i can  _ fly _ .” 

junmyeon sighs. “okay, so? is there something else you want?” 

“mm, your armor looks pretty nice, to be honest,” sehun says. junmyeon squints, trying to make out his face, but fails. “did you get the flower?” 

“what? yeah,” junmyeon says. “i’m surprised you care.”

“i really don’t,” sehun says immediately. “but you have no idea how  _ bored _ i get here. there are only so many oak trees i can talk to. they all spout the same fake deep, philosophical bullshit. also. armor?” 

junmyeon looks down. “actually, you can have this. it’s not like i made much use of it.” he’s still a little put out that he hadn’t done any herculean tasks or fought a magical bear or anything of that nature, but he had learned. a lot. and maybe some of it had even been about himself. 

“oh, no,” sehun says. “it’s no fun when you actually want to give it to me.” 

“you make absolutely no sense!”

“good,” sehun says, and junmyeon thinks he’s smirking. “i aim to mystify.” 

“can we terminate this conversation?” junmyeon says.

junmyeon can hear, if not see, sehun’s amusement. “getting snippy with a magical creature? i could bewitch you for that, you know. get rid of your eyebrows or something.” 

junmyeon’s hand flies up to his face. “please do not do that.” 

“nah, whatever,” sehun replies. “sucks enough for you that your boyfriend’s a dog, although i guess you’re on your way to remedying that.”

“hey, sehun?” 

“i shouldn’t have told you my name…” 

“do you want to come stay in eris? near the palace? you said you get bored here. and i… i’m actually planning on redoing the laws protecting magical creatures, and input from… whatever you are would be nice.” 

for once, sehun’s speechless. junmyeon waits anxiously, worried about his eyebrows. 

“you’re… are you messing with me?” sehun finally asks. “is this some kind of revenge joke?”

“no, that’s definitely more up baekhyun or chanyeol’s alley,” junmyeon says, smiling a little. “you’re really welcome to come. i could use the help.”

“...okay,” sehun says slowly. “okay. i think i will. i have to say goodbye to the oak trees, though. so expect me to just show up whenever i feel like it.” 

“you’re welcome anytime,” junmyeon replies, and sehun makes a small sound of surprise that sounds like the ringing of a bell and promptly disappears.

 

 

baekhyun is sitting cross-legged on the floor across from yixing, a cauldron between them, when junmyeon walks in. some of the witchlights have been dimmed, and junmyeon wonders what exactly the two of them are up to.

“hello,” baekhyun says, leaning back on his hand, the other resting on his stomach. “the soup’s almost done.” well, that answers his question.

“would you like some bread?” yixing asks. 

“what i would like,” junmyeon says, dropping into a seat between them and letting minho out so he can stretch his legs, “is for you to turn him back.” 

“oh, of course,” yixing says, stirring the concoction inside the cauldron. junmyeon peers inside to see carrots and beans floating near the surface. “i just work magic better on a full stomach. are you sure you don’t want some bread?” 

minho nudges his leg. “on second thought,” junmyeon says, “i’d love some.” 

yixing dishes out some soup for him, and he holds the bowl and the piece of bread in his lap, waiting for them to finish. baekhyun is loud even when he’s eating, exaggerating the slurping sounds he makes, probably on purpose. junmyeon has no idea how kyungsoo puts up with him. 

“flower,” yixing says, and junmyeon obediently hands him the icarus flower. “alright, minho, this is going to taste pretty damn terrible, but unless you want to be stuck this way, i’d recommend sucking it up and drinking all of it regardless.” he pauses, a strange expression on his face. “do you drink or eat soup?” 

“you drink the soupy part,” baekhyun answers, tongue darting out to catch a drop on the corner of his mouth. “you eat the stuff in it.” 

yixing hums assent, crushing the flower in his hands and sprinkling the petals into junmyeon’s bowl of soup. junmyeon sets the bowl down in front of minho, who looks down at with an unreadable expression on his dog-face. 

“wait,” junmyeon says, a thought occurring to him, “is minho going to be naked if he drinks this?” 

baekhyun splutters, but all yixing says is, “well, was he naked when he ate the cupcake?” 

minho lowers his head and starts slurping from the bowl, only drinking a tiny bit of the liquid before choking and coughing. 

“can’t be as bad as the cake junmyeon made that one time, and you ate a whole slice of that stuff,” baekhyun says, only a little sympathetically. junmyeon glares at him, making a mental note to admonish kyungsoo for thinking it okay to tell baekhyun everything, as minho keeps going with a small huff. “by the way, junmyeon, how was your trip?” 

“mostly uneventful,” junmyeon says, deciding to keep the information about the fae and the true outcome of the war to himself for the moment—he needs to process it properly, and who better to do that with than minho, who had been with him every step of the journey? “i met a not-pixie that wanted to steal my horse and armor and an ice dragon named minseok, though.”

“you named an ice dragon minseok?” baekhyun says, mouth dropped open.

“no, he was already named minseok,” junmyeon answers.

“oh, i’ve met minseok,” yixing says. “he’s very nice, isn’t he? hello, minho.”

“hi,” minho says, and junmyeon turns with a start to see that he’s back to normal, and keeps looking down at his hands like he can’t quite believe they’re there. he gives junmyeon a tired smile when their eyes meet, and junmyeon promptly flushes a dark red. “i would… really like a nap.” 

 

 

baekhyun joins them on their ride back to the castle, and chatters with minho the entire way, mostly asking questions about what it means to be a dog that minho answers with incredible patience. on the other hand, junmyeon isn’t quite sure what to say to him, so he doesn’t say anything. 

minho stops him before they enter, voice quiet. “um,” he says, chewing on his bottom lip, “after i… after i sleep, we really need to talk. about a lot of things. okay?” 

“okay,” junmyeon says, swallowing. he’s entirely unprepared, but he’s also not one to deny minho anything. “okay, uh—sleep well, ming.” 

“yeah,” minho says, smiling with the corner of his mouth. “thanks.” junmyeon thinks maybe taemin was right.

 

 

minho is folding a piece of paper into an origami crane when junmyeon enters. he looks up to see junmyeon standing awkwardly by the door, one hand rubbing the back of his neck, and his eyes crinkle. “hey.” 

junmyeon clears his throat and reminds himself that this is minho, who he knows almost as well as he knows himself, who has been his friend for more years than he has been king. minho with his warm eyes and even warmer smile. 

he approaches hesitantly, taking a seat next to minho on the bed and watching him finish up the crane. minho hands it to him when he’s done and takes a deep breath, sitting on his hands. “can you… let me finish before you say anything?” 

“whatever you want,” junmyeon answers, which makes minho chuckle. 

“so i—i mean, you probably figured out i’m in love with you,” minho says. “and obviously, because i just spent quite a bit of time as a canine, you… don’t feel the same way, and that’s—that’s okay, alright? i just wanted to tell you that it’s okay. you don’t have to feel bad about your own feelings and you don’t have to… force yourself to love me or anything. i’m sorry all of this happened.” 

“but i—”

“wait,” minho says, “remember to let me finish.” junmyeon shuts up, and minho continues, “i think, really, it’s far more important to focus on what minseok and jongdae told us. i’m not king yet, but we can… we can work together to come up with something that spans  _ both _ kingdoms.”

“what,” junmyeon says, feeling the tiniest bit argumentative, “you don’t think  _ us _ is important?” 

“that’s not what i said,” minho says, looking frustrated. “i’m not—i’m not trying to gloss over it or whatever, it’s just not the biggest thing we should be concerned with, especially since you don’t return my feelings. i told you, it’s okay. you were always too good for me anyway—”

“stop stop  _ stop _ ,” junmyeon says. unconsciously, he’s unfolded the crane and it now lies as a simple piece of paper, creased with fold lines, in his hands. “how can you even—how can you even say that? minho, you’re a—you’re amazing, this is… you shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions, maybe?” he’s tripping all over his words, his tongue too heavy in his mouth. “you’re my best friend and i couldn’t imagine my life without you. you're always so patient with me and you have such a bright outlook on life and…” he looks up to meet minho’s eyes, which have gone wide with shock. 

“what... what are you saying?” minho asks, voice barely above a whisper.

“i’m saying taemin was right,” junmyeon bursts out, finally tipping over that edge he’s been teetering on for so long. “what was the other reason this  _ non reversio _ stuff happened to you? i’m saying i was stupid and couldn’t see the obvious—couldn’t see what was right in front of me this whole time. i’m  _ saying  _ i’m in love with you too.” 

there’s a long, terrifying pause after which minho says, voice small, “oh.” 

“oh?’ 

“well, i… i wasn’t expecting…” minho looks down at the paper in junmyeon’s hands, then back up. “can i… hold your hand?” 

“hol—can you hold my hand,” junmyeon repeats. “yes, oh my god. please hold my hand.” 

minho shifts, hesitant, then finally reaches over to take junmyeon’s fingers, intertwining them with his and looking down at their joined hands with a small smile on his face. 

“can you say it again?” junmyeon says, feeling giddy, and minho doesn’t need him to elaborate.

“i’ll say it however many times you want me to,” minho replies softly. “i’m in love with you.” 

 

 

the day of the archery tournament is thankfully beautiful and clear, and as he’s making his way to the grounds where the competition will be held he spots yixing and jongdae of all people chatting cheerfully with minho, and he resolves to say hi when he gets the chance. he owes both of them a lot. 

the targets are already set up, and the contestants are milling around, surrounded by their well-wishers and lovers and gearing up for the challenge. junmyeon shifts impatiently, waiting for it all to be done and over with. 

“we can’t find junmyeon,” he hears baekhyun say, his voice loud and carrying as always, and he huffs out an exasperated breath. “i think he got sulky because he couldn’t compete and decided to skip.” 

“who even cares,” kyungsoo says. “are you going to watch this either?” 

“no,” baekhyun says. “let’s go make out.” 

if junmyeon rolls his eyes any harder they’ll fall out of his head, so he focuses on observing how the targets are placed. there are three rounds to the competition, the first being a simple “hit the bullseye,” the second a “hit all three bullseye at the same time—oh by the way the targets are farther away, too,” and last, but definitely not least “shoot the apple off this man’s head from really far away and try not to kill him while you’re doing it.” there is a spell in place, courtesy of yixing, that prevents any deaths in case someone isn’t as good a shot as they claim to be. he’s responsible like that. 

jongin announces the start of the tournament, and junmyeon forces himself to stop thinking about how amazing a king he is and instead about the people lining up to take their shots. the first two people don’t even make the target, and the next three hit near the outer edge. he resolves to increase the requirements for entry starting from next year, because frankly, this is ridiculous. 

they advance through the tournament, the competition dropping like flies. soon there’s just one other man left, a big, hulking fellow with straw-colored hair and large eyes. junmyeon eyes him and dismisses him almost immediately—he may be good, but he is not kim junmyeon. and sure enough, the guy panics and almost kills the poor man with the apple on his head, but thankfully junmyeon had prepared for exactly that. 

he lines up to take his shot, calming his breaths and reminding himself not to do anything stupid like think about minho kissing him or whatever, which of course means he’s now thinking about minho kissing him. or whatever. 

_ apples _ , he reminds himself.  _ head. win. no deaths. _

he lets the arrow fly, and it finds its target, piercing straight through the apple and leaving the man underneath with a delighted look on his face. there’s a moment where the whole arena is suspended in silence, and then the crowds erupt with cheers. the straw-haired competitor gives junmyeon a friendly pat on the back that’s just a little too forceful. 

“well, congratulations on winning,” jongin says, leading the prize—which is two cows that junmyeon really does not need—behind him as he walks toward junmyeon. “but, uh… who are you?” 

“oh, come on,” junmyeon says, pulling his hood back. “did you really think i wouldn’t sneak into the tournament in a dramatic robin hood-esque manner so i could prove to all my people that i really am the best shot in all the kingdom?” jongin doesn’t look all too surprised, so maybe he  _ had _ thought junmyeon would do something like this. “give the cows to this lovely man.” he points at the second-place winner, who is staring at him, open-mouthed. “in fact, give two goats to everyone else who competed.” 

“junmyeon!” 

the junmyeon in question turns around to see minho barrelling toward him with a giant smile on his face, a both exhilarating and terrifying scenario considering how  _ large _ minho is. junmyeon opens his arms and lets minho fall into them, laughing as he gets squeezed tight enough for his feet to be dangling a couple inches off the ground. 

“you did good,” minho whispers when he sets him back down, and then he’s kissing him, a little hesitant. junmyeon lets out a small noise of surprise in the back of his throat, then kisses him back with no hesitation at all. absolutely none. minho is warm and real and utterly human, and he’s all his. 

“this is sweet and all,” jongin says, “but i’m going to need you two to excuse me so i can go throw up. or gouge my eyes out. or both. simultaneously.” 

“jongin,” junmyeon says breathlessly, “you’re fired.” he gets a shrug in response. 

**Author's Note:**

> remember when junmyeon hit the wall during practice and made a perfect ten during the actual game that's me with life except opposite
> 
> thank you always for reading / leaving kudos / leaving comments!! ily all


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